by Frank Salive, publicity director, The Isle Pompano Park

Pompano Beach, FL — If all goes according to plan there will be another Hall of Fame inducted horseman in the South Florida driving and training colony for the 2010-2011 season — Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee Doug Brown. Since the award’s inception in 1989, Brown is the only seven time winner of Canada’s prestigious O’Brien Award as the top driver in his home nation.

Lap Time Photo – Skip Smith

Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee Doug Brown (right) is interviewed trackside about his plans to campaign in South Florida in the 2010-2011 season.

“We’ve thought about wintering in Florida for many years now and my wife Nancy and I are aiming to get here by September or October,” Brown said in a live trackside TV interview at the Isle Casino Racing Pompano Park. “Leading me to this decision was a combination of things. Things have slowed down for me in Ontario and the weather in Florida, well you just can’t beat it for racing or for developing young horses.”

Having Doug Brown in the drivers’ list at Pompano would certainly not be a new occurence. He has a long history of success in stakes races at the venue.

“In the great many years I was associated with Stew Firlotte we won the Breeders Crown at Pompano with Digger Almahurst and twice with Town Pro,” the 54-year-old Brown said. “Winning with Town Pro was special because we owned a piece of her.”

“Doug Brown is really well thought of and remembered at Pompano,” says the track’s assistant Race Secretary and Goshen Hall of Famer John Berry. “There are only 13 other drivers in the history of the sport with more wins than Doug. Lifetime, he has over 8,200 driving wins and almost $86 million in purses earned. To have a Hall of Fame horseman of his stature, accomplishment and integrity around our backstretch and race office, and in the drivers’ colony here, would be great. It would enhance our prospect of having even more races where the combined wins of the drivers involved is approaching 75,000 lifetime and that’s pretty incredible. In addition to the Breeders Crown wins, people here still remember the great drives he made here in the mid-1990s in the Matron Stakes when Mattduff upset 1-10 favorite A Stud Named Sue and when His Mattjesty defeated the Florida bred legend Red Bow Tie.”

A relocation from his home base near Ontario’s Kawartha Downs to South Florida would also allow Brown to continue the pursuit of his passion for training and breaking yearlings.

“Over the past seven years when catch-driving slowed down I’ve really enjoyed having a hand in developing young horses,” Brown says. “So far I’ve only had one that didn’t get to the races. A couple of the best known horses I’ve developed are Invitro and Dr No. Invitro I got when she’d been trained down to 2:35 and in her 2- and 3-year-old seasons with me she made close to $250,000. Dr No that I developed and raced at ages two and three also went on to become a Free For All horse. In Ontario you miss quite a few days training each Winter but in Florida you don’t. I’m anxious to find out for myself if what everyone here says is true, that Florida is better for the horses and the people.”

Before his plan to campaign at Pompano plays out this Fall, Brown has high hopes in the Ontario Sires Stakes program for 3-year-old trotting filly Daria Hall. Brown says she’s been reliably gaited and has been trained back in 2:10. She earned $45,000 without winning in her 2-year-old season.

“I spent all last Friday morning on the Pompano backstretch at Dan and Wally Hennessey’s barn and I got a lot of pointers on what to do to get ready for the move here,” Brown added. “The plan is to come down with 6-8 racehorses and 2-3 babies, and also try to pick up some drives on race nights. It meant a great deal to me that Dan and Wally said it would be a great move for me to come to Pompano.”